House Marvin (Novel: House Mórail)
House Marvin (Novel: House Mórail) is one of the five Noble Houses of Duilintinn. It is led by Lord Marvin the Magnificent (Novel: Lord Aiden Mórail). History Modern Day House Marvin, much like House Jackie, is thriving during this era of cryptic uncertainty in Duilintinn's history. The Enemy never fails to provide them with new clues to discover and hints of unknown magic to unveil. As a result, House Marvin is, for the most part, relatively stable at this time. With the exception of the average amount of fires breaking out and the enemy that threatens the kingdom as a whole, House Marvin has very few struggles or conflicts to worry them. As one might expect, this has done nothing to temper their reckless investigation of the unknown, and as the enemy further demonstrates his growing power and hitherto unseen magical abilities, curious mages and inventors desperate for more information might find themselves in over their heads... Geography House Marvin lies in a swampy, low-elevation region in western Duilintinn known as the Draoidh Valley. To the north, the trees of the Western Forest climb into the Northern Mountains. To the east, the plains of House Jackie stretch beyond the banks of the Agrona River. To the south, across the massive body of water known as Loch Glas, the Western Forest continues to stretch into the Southern Mountains of House Jameson and beyond. To the west, the Rúnach River is the only thing standing between House Marvin and the vast, unexplored reaches of the Western Forest. Flora and Fauna Most of the flora and fauna in House Marvin is the sort of wildlife that enjoys swampy marshland. However, as you travel closer to the Western Forest, you're more likely to see the Magical Flora and Fauna that the region is known for. However, the deeper into the valley you go, the harder it is to traverse the wild, swampy land covered in a thick layer of magical and mundane plantlife. That's why the roads all go around the edge. Climate House Marvin is an extremely humid, swampy climate, with a summer fog flowing out of the Western Forest each year. The region gets more precipitation than the House Jackie, but less than House Brody and House Jameson. During the winter, the valley avoids much of House Jackie's intense winds, though might still get some frozen rain or a gross coat of sleety snow. Culture House Marvin is full to bursting with colorful personalities, but they all have one thing in common; they love to make flashy, new discoveries and share them with the world. House Schneeplestein might be full of scholars, but House Marvin is full of innovators, and heaven knows they don’t always know (or care) what the consequences of their discoveries will be. Flashy, competitive, and cynical, members of House Marvin like to focus more on the drama of discovering or creating something new than the resulting implications. Members of House Marvin also have a tendency to jump from idea to idea and project to project when they get bored or dissatisfied. They also will spend hours, days, or even weeks attempting an investigation or invention that clearly leads nowhere. Despite this, members of House Marvin are making new discoveries almost every day. While members of House Schneeplestein gratefully begin integrating these discoveries into their understanding of the world and the threats they face, members of House Marvin revel more in the thrill of the discovery itself and the excitement it brings to others. Within The Watch, they use their inventions or magical skills to dispel illusions and uncover secrets, clues, and messages about the enemy and the missing lords. Watchers of House Marvin have a tendency to be a bit more cynical about their chances of success against the enemy, and unlike House Schneeplestein, they focus on pointing out threats and harbingers of doom to the rest, rather than using their discoveries to find a logical solution. House Marvin is ultimately a culture that values the thrill of the chase and discovery far more than any potential consequences, for good or ill. While one might assume this would cause House Marvin to be full of eccentric and anti-social hermits, the reality is quite the opposite. While it’s true that members of House Marvin will often spend much of their time hunting down their discoveries on their own, most of the visible culture from this house comes from what happens afterwards. Each member has a unique form of solo study, from magic to strange inventions and everything in between, but when a discovery is made, every member of House Marvin will immediately share this discovery with the entire kingdom. There is little fear of others stealing credit for their work; the joy of discovering and sharing something new is the ultimate prize for a member of House Marvin rather than the fame. In addition, taking credit for someone else’s work is mostly unheard of in a culture that seeks the thrill of the chase over the hunt’s eventual end. For this reason, members of House Marvin will vary between having extreme focus and no focus at all, depending on how much a project holds their interest. There is no point in studying something boring when you value the adventure of learning far more than the knowledge that comes from it. This is also the reason why House Marvin can be rather skeptical and cynical, especially regarding their chances against the enemy; facing a challenging, eternal foe with no perceivable solution could be seen as an entertaining quest for a member of House Marvin, rather than a doomed endeavor. In their opinion, knowing they are likely to be defeated only adds to the spice of it all, much to the dismay of other Watchers and citizens of Duilintinn. In addition, House Marvin tends to be a rather flamboyant and dramatic house, especially when presenting their discoveries to the rest of the kingdom. Some have even been described as performers in the way they hype up their peers before finally demonstrating their latest invention or magical ability. This drama does lend itself to a competitive streak; though House Marvin cares little for who will use their discoveries after they’ve been made, they are extremely competitive over who can show off their efforts in the biggest, grandest, most astonishing way possible. This, combined with a general recklessness and disregard for consequences of certain actions during their research, is why House Marvin sets more fires than any other house in the kingdom. On a side note, this is also how one member of House Marvin discovered how to create explosives, so it could be worse, depending on who you ask. Just be grateful that House Jackie is currently working on spreading their fire brigade concept to the other houses. Settlements Monacoil: 'The capital of House Marvin on the banks of Loch Glas. Featuring heavy influences from Feadhainn Era architecture, this city is home to House Marvin's government and the political hubs of House Marvin's major guilds. 'Rúnach Hold Outpost: 'An outpost of The Watch, located in the fringes of the Western Forest along the banks of the Rúnach River. Known as the primary source of reinforcements for Watchers defending Duilintinn's borders from The Enemy within the Western Forest. 'Sallabaile: 'Small, isolated town deep in the swampy fens in the center of the Draoidh Valley. Birthplace of Lord Marvin. 'Kiltieve: 'Small town, hidden away from the world on the northern edge of House Marvin, just out of reach of the Western Forest and Northern Mountains. Birthplace of King Sean. 'Glasbaile: 'Small village surrounded by farms along the eastern road through the Draoidh Valley. 'Imforis: '''Booming town on the road between Monacoil and Rúnach Hold, prospering from increased trade traffic from Watchers traveling to and from the outpost. '''Various Forest Ruins: Old settlements of Feadhainn Era architecture within the Western Forest, some even beyond the Rúnach River. No one knows why they were abandoned. Rúnach Hold used to be one such ruin before it was turned into an outpost. Economy House Marvin is the source of most magical education, goods, and services in the kingdom. Those who wish to study or benefit from the deep, unexplored studies of magic often travel or live there. In addition, House Marvin boasts the kingdom’s greatest- if also the most reckless- inventors and alchemists. New discoveries are being made there every day that benefit the kingdom as a whole (but so are new house fires). Further from the urban population on the banks of Loch Glas, many citizens of House Marvin make their living on the magical flora and fauna that thrive in the Draoidh Valley. While these plants grow prolifically in the fall after Hallows Eve, many won’t bloom properly when not exposed to magic. This leaves gatherers with two options; try to use their own magic to induce a bloom OR to venture into the fringes of the Western Forest. The latter was usually the default choice before The Enemy fled into the forest’s depths. While it was never perfectly safe to begin with, delving into the Western Forest with The Enemy’s forces on the loose is much more dangerous. Those who do so, however, would probably be much more familiar with the forest and its secrets than someone who only studied it from a distance, and probably make for excellent Watchers in the Gáire Roosts outpost or anywhere else near the forest. Guilds Three specific guilds hold the most economic and political sway in House Marvin: The Mages' Guild, Inventors' Guild, and Foresters' Guild. However, all of Duilitintinn's guilds have at least a minor presence in every Noble House. In particular, the Inventors' Guild often works in collaboration with House Jameson's Artisans' Guild. Government and Politics The Lord Lord Marvin has not been seen in so long that almost every story imaginable has been said of him and spread around the kingdom. Some believe he has been captured by the enemy. Others believe there is no evidence for this, and that he is most likely still aiding the king with his powers. A growing number of people even suspect treason. The Watch can find no evidence for any of these theories. The last signs of Lord Marvin were seen in 1608, when members of his house discovered telltale signs of his unique form of magic along the castle walls. With no further clues, most Watchers assume that this is some sort of protective spell, though there is no way to know for sure. Some view with suspicion the fact that these signs were discovered two months before the attack on Lord Chase by the enemy. However, until further clues are discovered, The Watch can make very few theories regarding the whereabouts of Lord Marvin. The Bureaucracy Each Noble House has a bureaucratic system running the day-to-day administrative stuff in the background, and has had one since Duilintinn's founding. The Lords were there to run the whole show, pick what they wanted their lands to strive towards, that sort of thing. The lords were more like a symbolic "this is what we stand for" heads of state than someone with actual administrative power, which was left to the bureaucracies. At first, this required a lot of oversight from each lord to make sure that the bureaucrats were actually doing what they asked of them, but since each house is now full of people with similar ideology and goals, that oversight is much less necessary. Most officials in the bureaucratic part of the government legitimately want the same goals that the Lord wanted (otherwise they would have probably chosen a different house). When the lords disappeared, very little about the actual functioning of the government changed. Instead, the bureaucracy strives to carry on the legacy and aims of their missing lord. Symbols The House Animal of House Marvin is a cat sidhe with reversed coloration and markings on its forehead. Category:Locations